behind the attack. differing assessments about what happened the night four americans were killed in libya. royal mess. england's duke and duchess of cambridge prepare to take legal action over the release of topless photos. and balancing act. three chinese tightrope walkers go down in highwire history with a daring record attempt. very good morning to you. i'm veronica de la cruz. those stories and much more straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc.

we begin this morning with lingering questions. there are conflicting versions from the obama administration and libyan officials about who exactly was behind last week's deadly attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya. nbc's brian mooar has details. >> reporter: was the attack on the u.s. consulate in libya spontaneous, or did terrorists use a protest over an anti-islamic film as cover? >> opportunistic extremist elements came to the consulate as this was unfolding. they came with heavy weapons which unfortunately are readily available in post-revolutionary lib libya. >> reporter: libya's interim president says it was coordinated by not by libyans. >> it was planned by foreigners, by people who entered the country a few months ago. >> reporter: libyan officials say they have rounded up dozens of suspects.

the fbi is hoping to deliver a definitive answer on what happened but has been unable to reach the consulate in benghazi because it's still too dangerous. the waves of anti-american protests from north africa to asia appear to be ebbing but critics of current u.s. policy say the protests are not the problem. they're a symptom. >> if we all decide to rally around the video as a problem, we are going to make a sear yus mistake. benjamin netanyahu says this is bigger than diplomacy. it's about the existence of the united states and israel. >> for them, we are you, and you are us. and at least on this point, they're right. >> reporter: brian mooar, nbc news, washington. attacks in afghanistan over the weekend claimed the lives of both civilians and american soldiers. eight nato troops including six americans died in assaults by taliban insurgents or afghan government forces. one attack may have been directed at the location where england's prince harry is based. and the nato coalition has

apologized for an air strike that killed eight afghan women. they were gathering firewood in the same general area as 45 insurgents who had been targeted. well, lawyers for england's duke and duchess of cambridge will appear in a paris court today to file a criminal complaint against the photographer who took topless photographs of the duchess. prince william and kate are in the salomon islands on the latest leg of their far east tour. royal correspondent with our english broadcaster itn is traveling with them. >> reporter: if there are storm clouds gathering in europe over the publication of those photographs, it wasn't apparent here. william and kate were given the salomon islands' version of a royal parade. through the streets in a canoe mounted on a pickup truck. officials insist the couple are upbeat, the smiles real, but with court proceedings starting in france, there's clearly concerned about who else will print the pictures. for all their angry statements

and threats of legal action, palace officials know they can't stop the publication of these pictures overseas. the only question now is whether or not the floodgates will open. this italian magazine is ready with the headline "the queen is nude" and 26 pages of photographs. william and kate went to pray at the islands' cathedral. the power failed. huge crowds strained to catch a glimpse of the couple. and it was decided to file a criminal as well as a civil complaint in the french courts. william and kate hope the photographer who took the pictures can be identified. ♪ they played pan pipes for the duke and duchess at dinner, and william responded with some local dialect. >> we look forward with great

anticipation to learning more about these magnificent islands and meeting more of its delightful people over the coming day. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: and for the photographers, a couple determined to keep smiling through adversity. itv news in the salomon islands. here's your first look at some of the other news going on around america today. in kentucky, there were back-to-back armed robberies over the weekend. first a gunman made his way through the back door of a pizza joint, then headed for the register. a few hours later and just blocks away, someone else robbed a hotel. police say so far they can't link the two crimes. in nevada, the show went on with a heavy heart. the reno air races were held this weekend. sunday marked the one-year anniversary of the tragedy there last year when a p-51 mustang fighter crashed into the crowd, killing the pilot and ten others. tens of thousands attended this year's event which included a

memorial for the victims. finally, check this out. in massachusetts, they are the arms that just won't quit. one man has muscled his way into the "guinness world record book" for having the largest biceps, also triceps. his arms are a whopping 31 inches in diameter. it is the result of working out seven days a week, two hours a day. he lifts 80-pound dumbbells, can curl 400 pounds. he can also bench up to 500 pounds. that is amazing. now for a look at the national weather, we turn to nbc meteorologist dylan drier with a look at the forecast. a very good morning and also welcome. >> thank you very much. it's wonderful to be here. and you know, especially when i can talk about some nice weather. we've got lots of sunshine until tomorrow. we are going to see more showers and pockets of heavier rain start to work into the east coast into tuesday. but for right now, the heaviest of the rain is located across

eastern texas, although we will see some improvements through texas as we go into this afternoon, even late morning we will already start to see some improvements out that way. some of this heavier rain falling back through western tennessee, about two to three inches of rain possible in this area. we also have this cold front moving through minneapolis right now. also producing some heavier rain. and it is actually going to drop temperatures significantly. we're looking at much, much colder highs behind this cold front as we go throughout the rest of the week. meantime, high pressure in control all across the northeast for one more day. tomorrow we are going to start to see some of this heavy rain move in. you can also see flashes of lightning move about to move on shore of the coast of louisiana. this is all the activity that's going to spread eastward. and again, we could end up with about two to three inches of rain within the next 48 hours. as it slowly creeps eastward. this has been a slow-moving system. so it is going to take a while to get to the northeast. but the good news is, it's going to move out quickly. even though tuesday looks like a

rainy day, we will start to see improvements by the middle of the week. and it looks like sunshine continues into the end of the week. veronica? >> thank you for that, dylan. well, the administration tackles china. down goes samsung and it's lost, there's a reward, but you probably don't want to find it. your first look at this morning's business headlines is straight ahead. coming up, the biggest upset of the season, the best haircut in the nfl and coaches gone wild. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. [ male announcer ] if you stash tissues

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welcome back to "first look." i'm veronica de la cruz. here are some of the top stories making news this morning. union teachers are still on strike in chicago and will meet on tuesday to consider a proposed contract offer. mayor rahm emanuel says he will try to get a court order to end what he calls an illegal strike. for the first time it's been confirmed that the fighting in syria's civil war involves members of iran's military. the commander of iran's

revolutionary guard says his forces are providing nonmilitary assistance but says iran could get directly involved in syria came under attack. a russian soyuz capsule landed safely in kazakhstan from a four-month stay on the international space station. and a new high wire world record in china as three performers walked on a wire at the same time. they safely completed the daredevil stunt more than 1,100 feet above a canyon without a net. and now here's your first look at this morning's dish of "scrambled politics." "the washington post" analyzed mitt romney's tax plan and says he can't cut taxes without adding to the debt. the paper's editorial said the gop plan is, quote, counting on magic. former republican candidate rick santorum told the value voters summit in washington

conservatives will never have, quote, the elite smart people on our side because they believe they should have the power to tell you what to do. okay. an unusual question in a poll in "esquire" magazine shows president obama leading mitt romney 58% to 22% on who would win a fistfight between the two contenders for the white house. on "saturday night live," jay pharoah debuted his impersonation of president obama. at one point he joked times are hard, kids are living with their parents. it's like we have a "sanford & son" economy. jennifer grand home was a hit at this month's democratic national convention, but she asked for forgiveness when video surfaced of her on "the dating game" in 1978. she tweeted, quote, my hair could have been a nest for an entire family of birds. you got that right. mitt romney says in an interview for "live with kelly & michael" tomorrow that

he does find time to watch tv and get this, he admitted, quote, i'm kind of a snooki fan. and then in the same interview, ann romney described an embarrassing moment while visiting the white house when she walked in on president george w. bush as he was getting a massage. she says they met later on. mr. bush winked and said, quote, i look pretty good, don't i? and that is your morning dish of "scrambled politics." and now here's your first look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow closed at 13,593 after gaving 53 points friday. the s&p added 5. the nasdaq rose 28. and taking a look at overseas trading this morning. in tokyo, the nikkei jumped 164 points. while in hong kong, the hang seng was up 28. well, the clock is ticking on a major strike possibility. canadian autoworkers have targeted ford as the u.s. automaker most likely to work

out a contract agreement before tonight's midnight strike deadline. the union hopes to use a ford agreement as the basis for deals to be negotiated with gm and chrysler. the union represents about 18,000 employees. the obama administration will announce a trade complaint against china today as the president campaigns in ohio, alleging illegal subsidies of auto and auto parts exports. samsung fell in asia after losing yet another patent battle against apple. this one before the u.s. international trade commission. jpmorgan chase is the subject of a u.s. regulatory probe focusing on the bank's anti-money laundering systems. and the zynga-ea mushroomed friday when they alleged, quote, anti-competitive and unlawful business practices. one other note, last week, we incorrectly identified zynga's ceo as stepping down. it was actually their chief marketing officer joining the chief operating officer and cheat creative officer as top

executives who have quit since august. data this week will be dominated by housing. a bloomberg survey predicts august increased at the fastest pace in almost four years. finally, halliburton is offering a reward for lost oil field equipment. but if you find it, stay away. the equipment lost by a crew somewhere in west texas contains dangerous radioactive material. so authorities say if you do find it, you want to stay at least 25 feet away from it and contact your authorities. in health news this morning, a new study finds your blood type may not be that big of a risk factor for heart disease. the research questions an earlier study that seemed to show higher risks for some blood ty types, but it shows a 10% risk in other factors like weight, cholesterol and blood pressure are much more important. for more on this story and other health news, you can always check out our health page online

at nbcnews.com. well, the panthers pounce. the pats fit the bit. the bengals throw three touchdowns and a shoe? plus the philadelphia eagles hurdle to a one-point victory. your first look at sports is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. a reason to look twice. the entirely new lexus es and the first-ever es hybrid. this is the pursuit of perfection. the entirely new lexus es and the first-ever es hybrid. why they have a raise your rate cd. tonight our guest, thomas sargent. nobel laureate in economics, and one of the most cited economists in the world. professor sargent, can you tell me what cd rates will be in two years? no. if he can't, no one can. that's why ally has a raise your rate cd. ally bank. your money needs an ally.

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and it's also why, with our partner in brazil, shell is producing ethanol - a biofuel made from renewable sugarcane. >>a minute, mom! let's broaden the world's energy mix. let's go. i was talking to my best friend. i told her i wasn't feeling like myself... i had pain in my pelvic area... and bleeding that wasn't normal for me. she said i had to go to the doctor. turned out i had uterine cancer, a type of gynecologic cancer. i received treatment and we're confident i'll be fine. please listen to your body. if something doesn't feel right for two weeks or longer, see your doctor. get the inside knowledge about gynecologic cancers. knowing can make all the difference in the world. welcome back to "first look." in sports, a wild week two of the nfl season saw some teams get themselves back on track

while others fell into an even deeper early-season mess. here's nbc's fred roggin. >> good morning. from upsets to comebacks, week two of the nfl season had a little bit of everything. let's start in philly. the eagles were flying high against the ravens. brent celek soared over ed reed. michael vick threw for over 300 yards but in the end he got it done with his feet. the go-ahead touchdown with under two minutes to play. the eagles squeaked out another win, 24-23. if you had the patriots in your survival league, your season is over. the cardinals pulled off the upset of the week. pats had a chance in the final seconds. stephen gostkwoski for the win and not even close. the cardinals held on 20-18. giants and bucs. eli manning picked off three times in the first half. but it's not how you start, it's how you finish. ended up with three touchdowns. 510 yards. after the game, tom coughlin let the bucs' greg schiano have it. coughlin won the argument. the giants won the game, 41-34. the jets laid an egg in

pittsburgh. ben roethlisberger let it fly and mike wallace haul it had in, a 37-yard bomb. steelers made it look easy, 27-10. that's the face of a football player, alex smith, battered and bloody. this will make the pain go away. a touchdown to vernon davis. the niners cage the lions, 27-19. to carolina, the rookie of the year versus the mvp. cam newton got the best of drew brees, called his own number in the fourth. saints drop to 0-2. panthers win, 25-37. chargers honored junior seau. chargers beat the titans, 38-10. and finally the best tackle of the day goes to the bengals. he wrapped up trent richardson, then grabbed his shoe and chucked it. you can't play without your cleats. he can be the backup quarterback with that arm. bengals won it, 34-27. that's your first look at sports. i'm fred roggin. and now for another look at the weather, here's nbc

meteorologist dylan dreyer with the weather channel forecast. did you see that haircut? >> oh, my gosh, insane. >> very involved. really something. >> i thought it was just the numbers on the side, but then when you get the whole face in the back, that's crazy. nice work by the hairstylist there. we are looking at some pretty nice weather to take hold of the northeast today anyway. we've got temperatures right now running in the 50s. so it does have that fall-like feel to the air, but i feel like across the northeast, that's what most of us have been feeling, you know, it is that time of year as we just finished the last official weekend of this summer. we are going to see some showers and storms today especially across eastern texas. those should clear out later on this morning and into this afternoon. and then as we go into tuesday, all that rain we're seeing in the southeast is going to spread even further to the east, stretching from northern new england all the way down into florida. and we are going to see some scattered showers and storms with about two to three inches of rainfall expected as we go into tuesday. but we should start to see improvements across the east by wednesday, veronica? >> so wednesday.

wednesday is the day. >> the sun's back wednesday. >> all right. we'll see about that. a new candidate stakes her claim to being hollywood's current bad girl. plus, what happened? one of the most beloved family movies of all time wasn't so beloved this weekend. your first look at entertainment is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. ♪make just one someone happy ♪and you will be happy too. without freshly-made pasta. you could also cut corners by making it without 100% real cheddar cheese. but then...it wouldn't be stouffer's mac & cheese. just one of over 70 satisfying recipes for one

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hey, did you guys see the trailer for the new movie "lincoln"? steven spielberg's new movie? there's a lot of controversy about this. it's getting a lot of attention because no one's ever heard lincoln's voice.

i mean, take a look at this. >> blood's been spilled to afford us this moment. now! now! now! shall we stop this bleeding? ha ha! interesting choice. >> and tonight jimmy welcomes actress susan sarandon, actor carl irvin and comedian jim hamilton. that is "late night with jimmy fallon" weeknights on your local nbc station. it is time now for your first look at entertainment news. there was a no doubt about it upset this weekend at the box office. "resident evil retribution," the fifth film in the milla jovovich franchise debuted with just over $21 million to take the top spot. and the re-release of "finding ne nemo" was expected to dominate with as much as $30 million, but it sank to runner-up with just

$17.5 million. the weekend's biggest box office news came from just a handful of theaters. "the master" which starred joaquin phoenix played on five screens. it collected over $725,000. a phenomenal average of just under $150,000 per screen, which is the best limited-release opening of the year. and no wonder. i mean, great actors. philip seymour hoffman. yeah. finally, already facing a dui charge, two hit-and-run counts and with her license suspended, actress amanda bynes was pulled over by police yesterday driving in burbank. she was given a misdemeanor citation, and her car was impounded. i don't understand the thing about these young hollywood actresses. >> especially because she had so many different shows. she had such a bright future. it just seems like she's spiraling out of control right now. >> i know. it's too bad. >> she's too young to do that. >> going back to the movies, have you seen anything good in. >> i can't even tell you the

last time i went to a movie. i'm surprised about "finding nemo." that was one of my favorites. that and "the lion king." >> really? we're learning so much about you. i love this. i'm veronica de la cruz. this is "first look." stay tuned because "way too early with willie geist" starts right now. the taliban claims credit for a wave of deadly insider attacks on u.s. and nato forces in afghanistan as the investigation continues in libya into the death of four americans including the u.s. ambassador. the question is, was that libyan attack spontaneous? as one senior american official now reports, or was it planned as the libyan government says? we'll have a live report from benghazi. the teachers strike in chicago enters a second week with kids not back in school, and a best-case scenario until wednesday. the question is will mayor rahm emanuel's push to get a court injunction to get teachers back to work end all this? and week two of the